‘Hot Pursuit’ Trailer: Reese Witherspoon and Sofia Vergara Do the Odd Couple Buddy Comedy Thing

In case you weren’t aware, there’s a new buddy comedy starring Reese Witherspoon and Sofia Vergara as a mismatched pair on the run. That film is called Hot Pursuit, and it now has an official trailer. But there’s something sort of familiar about this: straight-laced law enforcement official teams with loud-mouthed cohort in a plot that involves a dangerous drug cartel. Oh right, that’s very similar to The Heat, Paul Feig’s comedy starring Melissa McCarthy as said loud mouth and Sandra Bullock as the uptight law enforcement official.

Sure, the above trailer for Hot Pursuit is a little different — rather than try to take down the cartel, Witherspoon’s cop and Vergara’s star witness characters are evading them. After her stellar performance in Wild, it’s kind of a bummer to see Witherspoon head straight back into safe comedic territory. It’s not that she’s any less talented for it, but surely there are better comedic roles out there for her. Remember Election?

Hot Pursuit doesn’t look terrible, but it doesn’t really evoke much in the laughter department, either. Vergara plays a variation on the upscale, heavy-accented wife she usually plays, while Witherspoon gives a fine country drawl, but the closest thing to a successful joke in the trailer is Vergara describing menstruation to a couple of grossed-out men. It’s only remotely funny because it’s true: men are consistently grossed-out by periods (prove me wrong in 2015, guys).

The film also stars True Blood’s Robert Kazinsky, John Carroll Lynch (always solid), and Mike Birbiglia, and hits theaters on May 8.